300 Notes and Gleanings. 



oiled calico, can be thrown, it will prevent cold winds from penetrating, and keep 

 the hay or straw dry. 



When it becomes necessary, from severe and continuous frost, to keep the 

 glass covered up for a few weeks at a time, and when, perhaps, the thermometer 

 inside the pit would indicate a few degrees of frost, great caution is necessary in 

 uncovering, and exposing the plants to light and air, when the weather changes 

 suddenly to a thaw. To uncover suddenly, under such circums'tances, exposes 

 them to such a sudden re-action as will prove far more destructive than a degree 

 or two of frost. The covering should not be touched till the temperature inside 

 has risen above freezing a few degrees ; and then it should not be removed all 

 at once, but by degrees. Plants are living things, possessing all the suscepti- 

 bilities of the most perfect and dehcate organism ; and are as subject to injury 

 from sudden and extreme changes of light and heat as is the human frame. 

 Many never think of this, or, if they do, are apt to forget it ; and so, as soon as 

 it thaws, off goes the covering, and the plants are injuriously affected even by 

 the sudden flood of light ; and, if they have been slightly frozen, they are rup- 

 tured by a too sudden thaw, and mould and rottenness follow. Frost should not 

 be allowed to creep in, if possible ; but, if it does, it should be allowed to creep 

 out, — not be suddenly expelled. 



The great points, therefore, in watering plants, where fire-heat cannot be 

 applied, are, first, to keep the plants dry, and in as complete a state of rest as 

 possible, all the latter part of autumn and winter ; secondly, when it becomes 

 necessary to cover up for a length of time from severe frost, the covering mate- 

 rial should be dry and loose ; thirdly, when thaw takes place, do not uncover at 

 once, but gradually, and not till the thaw is complete. 



All winter-watering should be avoided beyond what is necessary to preserve 

 life ; and it is much better to have plants at the drooping-point than the least 

 over-wet. This is equally applicable to plants wintered in spare rooms, and, 

 indeed, even in greenhouses, where fire-heat can be used. It is astonishing 

 how little water is sufficient in winter for flower-garden plants, and especially 

 pelargoniums, which are often ruined by late propagation and over-watering in 

 winter. I have frequently had variegated pelargonium cuttings in eight-inch 

 pots on shelves go without water for eight and ten weeks, and look splendidly ; 

 although so dry, that some would think they would be starved. — D. Thomson, 

 in " Gardener."' 



Royal Ascot Grape. — The productiveness of this grape is extraordinary. 

 After every successive stopping, fresh bunches are developed on the young 

 shoots put forth. The regular crop has for some time been cut : but numerous 

 bunches of a second crop, left to test the fruitfulness of the variety, are now 

 ripening ; while there are others with the berries as large as peas ; and others, 

 again, from recent stoppings, younger still. So prolific is it, that the young 

 plants just struck from scarcely-ripened buds, are, in almost every case, show- 

 ing clusters which promise to grow on and perfect themselves during the winter 

 or early spring. It seems impossible to repress the bearing propensities of this 

 grape ; and this quality, if maintained, coupled with its size and fine quality, 

 mark it out as a grand acquisition for grape-growers. 



